One of the most widely used types of machines for the manufacture of glassware is the so-called I.S. machine, which machine comprises a plurality of identical sections arranged side by side, the sections operating continuously out of time with each other to produce glassware. The I.S. machine has developed over the last sixty years from the original machine of this type described in U.S. Pat. No. 1,911,119--Ingle.
While during this period of sixty years there have been many improvements in I.S. machines, e.g. increased number of sections, increased numbers of moulds in each section, electronic control mechanisms replacing mechanical controls, the basic mechanical structure of the I.S. machine has remained unaltered.
Among the features which are common to almost all existing I.S. machines are the following;
1. The various mechanisms of the machine are integrated into a machine frame, and access to repair such mechanism is difficult. PA1 2. The various mechanisms are generally pneumatically operated, and a complex array of piping is necessary to provide the required supplies of compressed air. This piping is very time consuming (and thus expensive) not only to assemble in manufacture but also to repair. PA1 3. If any substantial repair is necessary to a section, the whole I.S. machine (i.e. all the sections) has to be shut down while the repair is carried out. PA1 4. The various sections are mounted side by side in a machine frame, having upright frame members which support ancillary mechanisms, for example gob distributors. Air supplies to the various sections are provided from piping leading from these upright frame members. Consequently there is a risk of different pneumatic conditions obtaining in sections remote from the upright frame members and those close to them, a risk which increases with the number of sections in the machine which is now frequently 12 or more. PA1 the operating assembly comprising PA1 a piston and cylinder device comprising a first cylinder and a piston rod PA1 operating members operated by movement of the piston rod PA1 a locating cylinder secured to the first cylinder and having an external diameter which is less than the external diameter of the first cylinder PA1 the axis of the first cylinder, the piston rod and the locating cylinder all being parallel PA1 and the locating assembly comprising PA1 a cylindrical locating sleeve secured to a lower face of the table of the machine surrounding the aperture with its axis vertical which sleeve has an internal diameter corresponding to the external diameter of the first cylinder PA1 a clamping device mounted on an upper face of the table PA1 the arrangement being such that the operating mechanism may be positioned extending through the aperture, the locating cylinder being positioned in the aperture and clamped against vertical movement by the clamping device, and the first cylinder of the piston and cylinder device being located in the locating sleeve which determine the vertical alignment of the operating assembly.
It is one of the objects of the present invention to provide an operating mechanism for a glassware making machine which is easily mounted in the machine in the correct operating position and easily removed for repair or replacement.